Recent advances on diagnosis and management of childhood asthma and food allergies

Abstract

The epidemic of childhood allergic disorders has been associated to the decline of infectious disease. However, exposure to many triggers (airborne viruses, tobacco smoke, pollution, indoor allergens, etc.) contribute to the disease. Breast feeding practices, nutrition, dietary and obesity also play a multifaceted role in shaping the observed worldwide trends of childhood allergies. Guidelines for treatment are available, but their implementation is suboptimal. Then developed countries are slowing learning integrating the development of suitable guidelines with implementation plans. Awareness, psychosocial and family factors strongly influence asthma and food allergy control. Moreover, monitoring tools are necessary to facilitate self-management. By taking into consideration these and many other pragmatic aspects, national public health programs to control the allergic epidemic have been successful in reducing its impact and trace the need for future research in the area.

Estado Nutricional De Crianças E Adolescentes Hospitalizados: Comparação Entre Duas Ferramentas De Avaliação Nutricional Com Parâmetros Antropométricos

“…Corroborating our findings, other studies have demonstrated that, at the time of hospital admission, there is a predominance of children and adolescents with adequate nutritional status when assessed by anthropometric parameters. 3 , 21 , 22 , 23 On the other hand, weight loss is frequent during hospitalization, which reinforces the importance of early identification of children at risk of deteriorating nutritional status. A prospective study showed that 65% of the children had weight loss during hospitalization and the factors most predictive of its occurrence were: reduced food intake, pain and severity of the disease.…”

“…22 A similar frequency was found in Dutch and Italian hospitals, with 62 and 68% of the patients presenting moderate or high nutritional risk, respectively. 3 , 8 When the nutritional profile is evaluated according to the type of hospital, a multicenter study carried out in the Netherlands noted a higher prevalence of high nutritional risk in university hospitals, when compared to other hospitals, of 15 and 5%, respectively. The researchers suggest that this is due to a higher number of patients being hospitalized with some chronic disease in university hospitals, in comparison to others.…”

“…In children, some additional consequences are added, such as growth and cognitive development impairment as well as low performance at school. 3 , 4 , 5 In this context, it is important to identify children with the greatest nutritional risk early on, as it enables physicians/clinicians to provide guidelines for an intervention capable of preventing the worsening of the patient’s nutritional status, or for promoting their recovery. 2 , 6 , 7 , 8 …”

Efficacy of acupuncture in children with asthma: a systematic review

“…The development of childhood asthma is associated with a broad range of factors including genetics, environmental factors, and lifestyle [ 4 ]. Guidelines for treatment have been published, but their implementation has been reported to be less than optimal [ 5 ]. In addition, many of the commonly prescribed drug treatments for asthma have undesirable side effects [ 6 ], including effects on growth in children by inhaled corticosteroids [ 7 ].…”

Genetic Polymorphisms and Allergenicity of Blo t 5 in a House Dust Mite Allergic Filipino Population

“…13,14,15 Susceptibility to allergy is often influenced by several factors such as age, gender, heredity which is by far the most significant, and environmental factors such as exposure second-hand smoke and to household pets. 16,17,18,19,20 Allergic disorders are characterized by high levels of IgE which in turn are found to be associated with allergy prevalence and severity. 21,22,23 About 70-90% of allergic patients worldwide are sensitized to HDMs.…”